The Rough Guide to Italy by Martin Dunford

Author:Martin Dunford
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Travel
Publisher: Rough Guides
Published: 2011-08-29T16:00:00+00:00

San Domenico and the Museo Archeologico

Continuing on to Corso Cavour and heading south, you come to San Domenico (daily 7am–noon & 4–7pm), Umbria’s biggest church. It has a desolate and unfinished air from the outside, but it’s also appealing in a big and rather melancholy sort of way. The original Romanesque interior collapsed in the sixteenth century and the Baroque replacement is vast, cold and bare. Like Sant’Agostino, however, it’s full of hints as to how beautiful it must have been – nowhere more so than in the fourth chapel on the right, where a superb carved arch by Agostino di Duccio is spoilt only by a doll-like Madonna. In the east transept, to the right of the altar, is the tomb of Benedict XI (1324), another pope who died in Perugia, this time from eating poisoned figs. It’s an elegant and well-preserved piece by one of the period’s three leading sculptors: Pisano, Lorenzo Maitani or Arnolfo di Cambio, no one knows which. There’s also another good choir, together with some impressive stained-glass windows – the second biggest in Italy after those in Milan’s Duomo.

Housed in the church’s cloisters is the Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell’Umbria (Mon 10am–7.30pm, Tues–Sun 8.30am–7.30pm; €4). Before being hammered by Augustus, Perugia was a big shot in the twelve-strong Etruscan federation of cities, which is why the city has one of the most extensive Etruscan collections around. The place is definitely worth a visit, even if the Etruscans normally leave you cold, for there’s far more here than the usual run of urns and funerary monuments. Particuarly compelling are the Carri Etruschi di Castel San Marino, some exquisite sixth-century bronze chariots; a witty collection of eye-opening artefacts devoted to fashion and beauty in the Etruscan era; and the bewildering Bellucci Collection. The last is a private hoard of charms and amulets through the ages: everything from the obvious – lucky horseshoes – to strange and often sinister charms such as snake skins and dried animals.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.